The Emperor's Amulet
by pandamanda09
Summary: Revised.  A powerful amulet; a wicked man determined to use it for his own personal gain; a boy claimed dead. The forces of good and evil are pitted against each other in a struggle to save the world.
1. Storm of Discovery

**RULE of KING: THE EMPEROR'S AMULET  
><strong>Chapter 01: Amity Park, December 2004

_Yes, I'm re-doing RoK. For those of you who were watching the original story, here it is again, but with a LOT more added. I already have rewritten to chapter 5 and I'm not yet in a different year but still in the 2004. Depending on how I want chapter 6 to go, we may not get into the **fast-forword so many years** chapter until 7. It's either 6 or 7; but we get to see more of what happened beforehand. And, as you can already tell, I've renamed it more appropriately to The Emperor's Amulet because this deals with that particular artifact. I hope you enjoy! :)_

_Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman  
><em>

* * *

><p>It was a gloomy day in the town of Amity Park and the clouds above threatened to rain. The townsfolk had decided to remain indoors; only a few brave souls dared to tread outside and risk a downpour. It was early December, nearing the winter season, but Mother Nature kept the weather warm, satisfying her clients with a few more weeks of non-winter weather. Some trees still had their autumn leaves.<p>

A car screeched, causing anyone within earshot to jump. Someone shouted a few choice words at the driver as the car drove away, leaving a fourteen-year-old Danny Fenton soaking wet from a puddle. "I really appreciated that!" the yelled, attempting to shake himself dry. Around him, several passing strangers looked at him with pity, but strayed away.

He sighed, kicking a loose pebble, and continued walking with his hands placed in his pockets. Danny shivered from the cold water now joining him on his walk. Had he known someone would splash him, he would have brought along a coat…or an extra set of clothes.

"Hey, Fenton's all _wet_!"

Danny stopped immediately in his tracks upon hearing a familiar voice mock him. He turned around just in time get caught between Dash and Kwan as they squeezed him tight. The next thing he knew, he was on the ground, gasping for breath. The two jocks walked ahead of him laughing, glancing back occasionally at his misfortune.

He hated being the jocks' punching back. Every day it was something; getting pushed around in the hallway, shoved into a locker, getting his clothes stolen after gym class… He was fortunate enough that that one only happened _once_ and he saved himself from humiliation by transforming and retrieving a new set from home. His ghost powers had saved him many times.

Getting back to his feet, he brushed off the stray dirt now accumulating on his clothes. He was still soaked, and much of the dirt didn't come off as a result. Again, he sighed and continued walking down the sidewalk, determined to reach his destination before something else happened.

After several minutes, he finally saw the entrance to the town park. His clothes were beginning to dry off, but were damp. It was uncomfortable for him. He didn't want to return home, though. The last thing he wanted was to go home. Back there was drama, and a lot of it. It was unfortunate that he had left his sister behind to deal with it while escaped for a while. It was only six in the evening; he could kill a few hours by hiding out in the park until everything cooled down.

He looked both ways, checking for any approaching cars. Seeing none, he bolted across the street toward the park entrance, not stopping until he had entered the peaceful area. A squirrel noticed him and dashed off to a tree, scaring a flock of birds. Danny watched as the frightened creatures flew away to the other end of the park. He smiled at them, realizing he was doing the exact same thing—running away from his problem. The birds simply had to deal with a squirrel, but instead of co-existing in the same tree, they had decided to take flight and find another place to perch. Instead of him dealing with the drama at home, he had decided to take off in search of a peaceful place to hide out.

He was a bird scared to face the squirrel.

His eyes drifted to the lonely wooden bench nested near the entrance. Danny looked at it for a several seconds, deciding whether he wanted to sit there or find another bench further down the path. He wanted to be left alone; sitting at the entrance could tempt anyone to bother him. But as he glanced around, there really was no one around the area or walking the sidewalk outside. He did feel too tired to move anymore, and this bench _did_ offer him time to rest. He could always move if someone decided to join him.

Danny bit his lip and stepped toward the empty bench. He slid down onto the wood and leaned back, allowing his legs to stretch out. He tilted his head back, too, and looked up at the gray sky. If it rained, he was already dampish, so any more water couldn't do harm. It would at least clean him free of the hitchhiking dirt.

His phone buzzed in his pocket, interrupting the peace he wanted. He moaned and reached into his pocket to grab it. Danny leaned forward to get a better view off the screen. He quickly stashed it back away upon seeing the name that had popped up—_Mom_.

She was the _last_ person he wanted to talk to. His mother—although not _as_ obsessed over ghosts as his father, but still obsessed—was _the_ most lethal person in his family. She was a genius; she was obsessed with ghosts; she _built_ weapons designed to cause harm to a ghost; and she had spot-on aim when putting those weapons to use. Danny had been terrified to talk to either parent over his special condition, but more specifically his mom. At least with his dad he could trick the man and escape before anything bad happened.

But that wasn't the case with _Mom_.

The phone buzzed again. He took it out and smiled at the name now displayed on the screen. It was Jazz. She was the _only_ person in his family he could trust with the secret and not have a gun pointed at him. His sister would never turn on him. But he couldn't answer her call. He left his house to get _away_ from the drama. If he answered the phone, he wouldn't be getting away from it.

"I'm sorry," he whispered as he returned to the phone to his pocket. It would probably be better if he turned it off, instead of curiously looking at the screen and deciding whether or not he should answer it.

He couldn't help but wonder why she called him. Had she escaped from their parents and was looking for a place to hide, like he? Was she in her room, crying after trying to explain the whole situation to them and needed someone to comfort her? Did something of utter importance happen that he should know about?

His phone buzzed once. Quickly, he removed it from his pocket and noticed he had a new text message. Danny opened it. The message was from Jazz. If something did happen, whatever was typed in the text was going to tell him.

_From: Jazz  
>I hope you're not off doing something stupid. I'm really worried about you; you left in a hurry. Mom and Dad are worried about you. They know EVERYTHING, Danny. They'd be out tracking you right now if I didn't tell them to let you be. Come home soon, please.<br>Dec 5, 6:42 pm_

Danny stared at the message, re-reading it several times. She had told them _everything_. And why wouldn't she have? He had left her to battle them alone, knowing that they knew something. Jazz probably would have tried to convince them that their claims were ridiculous before she actually _said_ anything. She would have tried to protect him and his secret.

It would be wise to head home now, knowing that his parents actually knew the whole story. But did he really want to go home to more drama? They had _just_ been told; surely they were waiting for him to walk through the front door, or fly through his window, and confront him about it. To avoid any unwanted confrontation, it would be better if he waited in the park for at least another hour. He would discuss it tomorrow, but not tonight.

_Hopefully_, he thought as he leaned back on the bench again, setting his phone down on the wood, _they don't try to hunt me down if I'm not home soon._

The sad thing is he could easily see that happen. Jazz had told them, based on the text, not to search for him. But would they really listen to their sixteen-year-old daughter? Why would they? He was _Danny Phantom_; the one ghost they had been after for weeks and hated the most. As professional ghost hunters, it was their job to come after him; son or not.

Danny quickly glanced in the direction of the open street, expecting to see a man dressed in an orange jumpsuit running toward the entrance, a tracking device in hand. The man would be screaming back at a woman adorning a teal jumpsuit, carrying a weapon in her hands and a Fenton Thermos strapped to her back. The woman would be the first to enter the park and shoot on sight. He wouldn't see it coming and get hurt. He would transform in front of them, hoping to get away, but instead he would get sucked up into the thermos and hear the gloating cries from the two ghost hunters outside. Only when they were ready to dissect him would they release him from the metal, cylindrical prison.

The fourteen-year-old shivered at the thought, keeping his eyes trained on the entrance. He wouldn't let them get him, _ever_. If they didn't love him anymore and saw their teenage son as nothing more than a freak half-ghost, then he would run. Never would he considering harming them, but he would do his best to escape becoming a lab experiment.

A cry of thunder from the graying sky above instantly caught his attention. Danny looked up at the sky as a flash of lightning cracked. He wasn't scared of a thunderstorm. He'd been electrocuted in his own home and survived to become the town hero. What could lightning to do the kid who'd battled ghost after ghost, taking hits that a normal person wouldn't survive?

Little droplets of rain began to drizzle down. Some hit him. The wise thing to do would be to leave before the storm got worse. Sure, he wasn't afraid of a thunderstorm, but he wasn't that confident lightning would have no serious effect on him. Danny stood up and put his phone away as another flash of lightning cracked overhead, drawing closer to him.

He jumped away from the wooden bench and looked back up at the sky. "Danny, that's your cue to leave," he told himself and began to make a run toward the entrance.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning hit the grass next to him, causing him fall backwards. His phone slipped out of his pocket as he landed on the hard grass beside the bench. Danny's heart began to race as he realized the danger of being caught out in a thunderstorm with lightning threatening to attack him. It was toying with him at the moment like a playful kitten strategizing ways to claw your fingers. The moment he let his guard down, it would strike dead-on and get him.

_Think, Fenton, think! Where can you ride out a thunderstorm?_ He asked himself, searching the park for a shed to hide in. He never recalled seeing one, ever. There were only trees; lots and lots of trees.

As bad an idea as it was, he set his eyes on the nearest tree, grabbed his fallen phone, and jumped up off the ground. He only needed the tree's protection temporarily while he called for Jazz to pick him up. Danny ran for the tree, dialing Jazz's phone as he zigzagged his way over to his temporary source of safety.

The phone only rang twice before his sister picked it up. _"Danny? Where are you?"_

Thunder roared overhead. "I'm at the park."

"_WHAT? There's a storm coming in! Are you crazy? You'll get killed!"_

"I'm aware of that!" he shouted into the phone. The tree was getting closer... But another bolt of lightning hit the ground behind him, forcing him to run faster. He had to get to the tree…

"_Can you make it back home?"_

He finally reached the base of the tree and fell against it, his heart beating against his chest. Danny was panting heavily as he tried to answer. "No."

"_Alright, alright; I'll, uh, be right out. It might take a few minutes since I'll have to sneak past Mom and Dad."_

"Just do your best, okay?"

"_I'll see you soon, Danny. Just…don't take cover under any trees."_

He heard a click from the other end as his sister hung up. Danny looked up at the tree he stood under and growled, closing his phone. "No problem…" he said sarcastically and put his phone away. He sighed and rested his head against the trunk. Where else could he have hid? Did Jazz really expect him _not_ to take cover under a tree?

"Sisters…" he shook his head. The rain began to fall heavily now and some drizzled down through the remaining leaves and branches of the tree. He felt the drops and curled closer to the base, hoping to avoid getting any wetter than he already was. "Well, at least it can't get much worse."

Lightning hit the ground for the third time that evening, scaring Danny as he hid under the tree. He jumped and quickly moved away from the direction he had run from, figuring it was a 'hot spot' for lightning strikes. Thunder continued to roar; a loud _boom_ shook the ground and the tree.

The branches above him rattled. He hugged the base as several dead pieces of tree began to fall down. Then he heard a loud crack. Scared to look up, he shut his eyes tightly, pressing his body against the trunk. He had a feeling something bad was going to happen.

Next thing he knew, something fell down on him, scratching his bare skin. He cried out in pain as blood oozed through the small cuts caused by the fallen tree. Danny opened his eyes to see the top half on top of him, trapping him against the remaining tree. He could barely move.

"C'mon, Jazz!" he called out, hoping his sister was somewhere nearby. He didn't feel like being killed in a thunderstorm. That wasn't how he figured he'd die. As Danny Phantom, he wanted to believe that some ghost fight would go horribly wrong. Unless a ghost was involved with the breaking of the tree, he didn't want this to be his last minutes alive.

Danny breathed heavily as he panicked. No, this _was_ it. Mother Nature was going to kill him. He was a half-ghost freak; a man-made creation. He didn't belong to her anymore. She didn't create him. So she was going to destroy the freak! Kill him with same pain that created him.

"Danny!" someone called out his name. A light shined in his eyes when he looked. He could make out the silhouette of girl running toward him. As she got closer, he recognized her as Jazz. She began pulling the fallen tree off of him. "I thought…"she huffed, "I told you…_no…trees_!"

The fourteen-year-old shrugged to the best of his ability. "Where _else_ was I supposed to wait for you?"

"Dang it, Danny; you could have hid anywhere but under a _tree_!"

He glared at her, turning himself intangible and walking straight through the tree. Jazz stepped backwards, when she noticed him crawling through the branches. After he cleared the destruction, he returned to normal and brushed the fallen debris from his shirt.

Jazz's jaw dropped. "You…" she muttered, throwing him the 'death glare' and raised her arms to strangle him. "Why couldn't you have done that _BEFORE?_"

"I _forgot_!"

"You _forgot_ you could _phase_ _through_ the tree?"

"_No_!" he threw his arms up. "I _forgot_ you _knew_! Do you know how difficult it is getting used to someone else _knowing_ about _this_? I forgot you _knew_."

The sixteen-year-old took a step back and shut her mouth. Danny was panting; shaking. She could see it; her little brother _had_ forgotten she knew all about his powers and he had been scared to 'reveal' himself to her. Jazz didn't blame him. She would have probably done the same thing.

Stepping forward, she wrapped her arms around the fourteen-year-old protectively. He leaned in, pressing his body against hers in an attempt to keep warm. "I'm sorry; I shouldn't have yelled at you," he said quietly as he was led to the car.

"You're my little brother and you have a pretty serious secret. _I_ shouldn't have yelled at _you_."

"Hey!" the young halfa stopped abruptly, causing Jazz to almost fall over him. Something shiny in the grass beside the stone wall of the park caught his attention. He ran out from under his sister's arms toward the object. "What is _this_?"

Jazz followed him, reaching him just in time to see him clear the grass obstructing the view of what appeared to be a golden amulet. "It looks valuable. Someone must have dropped it."

"Nah, it looks like it hasn't been here for more than an hour."

"Yeah and how can you tell that?" the older teenager looked at him skeptically.

Danny shrugged, picking the amulet up. There was a black cross painted on the front, with the letter 'A' scripted in the middle. It appeared to be in a very new condition. "I don't know, but I think I would have noticed it if it's been here longer than I have." He straightened up, still holding the item. "It's best not to leave these kind of things unprotected. It could be an extremely powerful artifact for all we know."

"_Or_," Jazz began, grabbing her brother's arm and pulling him toward the car, "it could belong to someone and they're missing a very important piece of their life. Not everything has something to do with ghosts."

"Still, I'm not just going to _leave_ it here. The last thing we want is for it to turn out to _be_ a powerful artifact and another ghost gets their hands on it."

"Do what you will, Danny, but I'm not getting involved," she said and opened the car door. Danny went around to the other side, carefully holding the amulet. Jazz opened his door from the inside, accidentally smacking him in the stomach. He grunted before sliding into the seat, glaring at his sister. "Oops?" she shrugged, putting the car in _drive_ and returning to the street as the two siblings headed home.


	2. Fears and Secrets

**RULE of KING: THE EMPEROR'S AMULET  
><strong>Chapter 02: Amity Park, December 2004

_Uh-huh; it's second chapter. I told ya I have up to chapter 5 already typed out. Chapter 3 won't be added until chapter 6 is done (which should be tomorrow or early Saturday).  
><em>

_Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman_

* * *

><p>The Fenton siblings returned to FentonWorks around a quarter 'til eight. After turning off the car, Jazz motioned to her brother to remain silent as they entered the house. She had had to sneak out earlier to get him. Danny nodded, agreeing with the plan, but making a suggestion to turn them both invisible to sneak through the house easier. Feeling uncomfortable with the thought of being unable to see her body, Jazz quickly dismissed the idea.<p>

"Okay, well you sneak in the old fashion way, and I'll use my super cool _ghost powers_ to sneak in unnoticed," the fourteen-year-old said and turned invisible. Jazz sighed and exited the car. She heard the other car door open and close, but when she turned around, saw no one.

She pointed her finger at a spot she hoped her brother was standing. "Fine, just don't _scare_ me. I'm still new to this," she quietly scolded her invisible brother. Danny laughed, but otherwise remained silent. Although she knew he was right behind her, Jazz felt uncomfortable with the fact she couldn't _see_ him. Certain ghost powers made her nervous; invisibility being one of them.

"Jazz, are you okay?" the young hybrid reappeared, concerned for the well-being of his older sister. The amulet was placed around his neck so he didn't have to keep it in his hands the whole time. It was also easier to hide, if their parents somehow caught them sneaking in. "If it makes you feel better," he said reassuringly, covering the artifact under his shirt, "I won't use my powers."

"So you'd rather sneak in the old fashioned way? How noble," she smiled, rubbing his hair until it was messier than before. He scoffed and phased right through her until he was closest to the door. Danny put a finger up to his mouth, signaling her to stay quiet, and turned the knob. Together, the siblings entered their house silently.

Crouching low, Danny pressed his back against solid object as he maneuvered through the backroom toward the kitchen. The house was pitching black, but the halfa could see with clarity. His eyes were glowing green, allowing him to see in the darkness. Behind him, his sister scrambled to keep up, occasionally smacking her knee against objects.

"Were coming up on the kitchen," he called back, stopping in the doorframe. He glanced back, waiting for Jazz to catch up. He continued speaking quietly. "Once we get through there, we'll be at the stairs, so we'll be able to act more casually, instead of playing Ninja."

Jazz frowned. "But I like playing Ninja…"

If his sister could have seen his face, she would have seen the not amused look he was giving her. She was his older sister; older and more _mature_ sister. Rarely did he have thoughts of her think that a silly, childish game would be enjoyable to. He wasn't even sure if she actually _meant_ it. But her admitting that she _liked_ playing Ninja, made him think about her inner child and what other childish behaviors she hid under her mature mask.

"Danny? Where are you?" she called for him, stumbling around trying to find him. She had her arms out, feeling the floor. After a few seconds, she felt something solid under hand, gripping it tight.

"Hey, that's my shoe!" Danny smacked her hand. "Keep that hand to yourself."

The older sibling shrugged. "Sorry," she whispered and crawled up next to him and felt the linoleum floor of the kitchen. "We're at the kitchen!"

"Uh-huh," he nodded and inched forward. "Wait here while I check for Mom and Dad," the hybrid instructed as he turned invisible. Alone now, Jazz felt bored. She didn't want to _wait_; she wanted to _do_! She wanted in on the action. Sneaking around the house…it made her feel normal. _Normal_ teenagers lie and sneak around all the time and their parents expect them to because it's all part of growing up. Sure she was normal, but not _normal_. Her brother, although he wasn't a typical human, was a _normal_ teenager. This kind of thing, sneaking around and casual lying to authority figures was what teenagers did best and Danny was ultimately the _king_.

Jazz smiled, thinking of how _normal_ her half-ghost brother really was.

A light tap on her shoulder stole her away from her inner thoughts. Two bright green eyes stared at her. Her heart began to race. "The coast is clear; we're good to continue on normally."

_Normally, _she couldn't help but giggle as she clung to the walls to keep her balance. Danny remained in front of her, allowing her to use him as a guide as they moved through the kitchen and hallway toward the stairs. It was a long way up, with creaky boards, but the two siblings felt confident enough they could make it to their rooms successfully.

Using the rail as a guide, the fourteen-year-old let his sister climb up first, keeping an eye on her in case she fell. She slowly ascended the stairs, strategically setting her foot down. Once she hit the top, three minutes later, she silently cheered to herself for not making a single noise.

"Congratulations," his voice popped up behind her as he floated above the staircase as Danny Phantom. Jazz nearly screamed out of shock, but tightened her mouth together.

"Jerk," she whispered to him. Danny shrugged and returned to the floor, transforming back into his human half. Jazz slapped him on his shoulder before turning and heading toward her bedroom. Her hand on the knob, she glanced back down the hall at her younger brother. He continued to watch her, making sure she was safe before disappearing into his own room. Jazz smiled, turned the handle, and walked in, closing the door behind her.

Safely in her room, the sixteen-year-old collapsed against the door, sighing. She felt a rush doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing. She had fun. It was something she wanted to experience again. Being the bookworm and student genius was stressful; Jazz needed downtime.

Standing back up, she felt the wall for the light switch and flipped it _on_.

* * *

><p>Danny sat down on his bed, bouncing up and down on the mattress. It was several minutes after nine and he groaned at the thought of tomorrow being a Monday. He hated school; he hated being bullied. There was no telling <em>what<em> prank Dash was going to pull on him.

Suddenly, he heard Jazz scream followed by a loud thud. Terrified of the thought of a ghost attack, he jumped up on his bed and leapt into the air, transforming into his ghost half. Satisfied with the change, he phased through the wall leading to the hallway and flew to his sister's room, again, passing through the wall.

Jazz sat on her bed, a worried look on her face. "Jazz, what's wrong?" he asked and landed on the floor beside her, searching the room for any unwanted ghosts. He didn't find any and his ghost sense hadn't alerted him to a single visitor. His sister didn't appear to be hurt, just a little shaken up. So, if it wasn't a ghost, why _did_ she scream?

"Get out," he heard her whisper, turning his full attention to her. She stared back at him, shaking. Something that spooked her and now she was telling him to leave.

"Not until I know what _happened_," Danny replied, shaking his head.

The sixteen-year-old dropped her eyes, motioning her head toward the closet. Danny looked as a strong smell hit his nostrils—ectoplasm. He felt confused, knowing he didn't sense a ghost in the room. Why was he smelling one then? Curious, he left the bed and approached the closet. He knew he could handle whatever was behind the doors; there wasn't anything he had to worry about.

Someone moved behind him and two shadows appeared. He stopped walking, frozen in place. He couldn't make out the figures yet; they were both clumped together. One appeared taller than the other, and more bulky. An image of two very familiar people crossed his mind, but he couldn't believe they would frighten his sister and set up an ambush to get him.

Well, scaring his sister was something he found hard to believe…

He heard a click and quickly turned around to face his parents. His mother held a gun in her hands, aimed directly at him. His father held the Fenton Thermos, its lid capped. They both glared at him like he was the Devil, wandering their house in search of a soul to steal.

"Mom? Dad?" he muttered in shock. He _should_ have expected this sort of thing. They knew _everything_ and still wanted to obliterate him. Was there no hope in convincing them that he was still their shy, clumsy son but only in a different suit?

"I want my son back," Maddie said through her teeth, her finger pulling back on the trigger. The smell of ectoplasm grew stronger as the weapon warmed up. "Jack, take off the lid."

Danny ignored his father as he effortlessly removed the cap to the thermos. His green eyes were trained on his mother, hoping she wasn't about to attack him and it was all a joke. But a little voice in his head reminded him that they were ghost _hunters_; it was their job to track down ghosts and destroy them. And here they had the one ghost they'd been after and never able to catch. He was the ultimate prize.

He was screwed.

Maddie held the gun higher, but didn't shoot it. Her finger remained on the trigger, ready to pull back the second he decided to make a run. She wouldn't miss. Elbowing Jack, she said three little words that caused Danny's stomach to turn. He faced his father, pleading with him not to listen to her. But the man shook his head. His mother repeated the command:

"Push the button."

* * *

><p>He woke up with a throbbing headache and hearing the sound of a machines being run. Danny ignored the noises as he opened his eyes and sat up, rubbing his aching head. He groaned. The lighting in the room he was in was dim.<p>

"_You're awake."_

His head shot up in the direction he'd heard someone speak. A woman stood off in a dark corner, hidden from the lights. He could make out long, wavy hair surrounding her. She took several steps forward toward him, her feet bare. A golden dress appeared out of the darkness, followed by the thin, golden-haired woman. Her silver eyes stared down at him.

"_You are a strong, courageous young hybrid, Danny Phantom. Yet you are foolish."_

"I'm sorry? I don't exactly know what's going on here. Who are you?"

"_I am the human form of that amulet you discovered; I have no name. You have deterred my plans, young Phantom."_ She had closed the gap between them and was now inches away from his face. _"I am not disappointed, however. You possess more potential. I can see this as an opportunity for me to have a little fun."_

She grinned and backed away from him. _"A hint, young warrior: I am connected to your heart. I know all your fears; your desires; your secrets. I can be your greatest friend, or your worst enemy."_

The woman disappeared into the darkness, leaving Danny alone in the dimly lit room. But something glowed beside him, catching his eye. Looking down, he noticed the amulet from the park. It wasn't brightly lit, but the whole encounter with the golden-haired women moments ago left him baffled. What was going on? Did this thing really know everything about him? He could have imagined the whole thing, right?

A blurry image distracted him from his thoughts. Walking passed him as a ghostly blur was his mother. He was now in the lab, watching her maneuver through the mess. She carried a syringe in her hands, full with green ooze. He felt a prick on his arm, and looked down, seeing ectoplasm drip out of a small needle-sized hole.

Danny returned to the scene playing before him. His mother now held a scalpel, cleaning it in the sink of the same green ooze he saw the syringe filled with. He stared at her, wondering what the tool meant. A sharp pain suddenly radiated from his chest. He got scared, but looked anyway. The hybrid watched as his suit was sliced from one side to the other; ectoplasm filled in the cut. It flowed easily, staining the rest of his suit.

_No… No, no, no, no, NO!_

"No!"


	3. Manic Monday

**RULE of KING: THE EMPEROR'S AMULET  
><strong>Chapter 03: Amity Park, December 2004

_Yay, chapter 3! I want to say 'thank you' to everyone who has reviewed and added this story to their favorites and/or story alerts! It makes me smile when I get notifications that people like it :) Anyway, I won't be adding chapter 4 until Sunday or Monday at the latest. I'm going to Cedar Point all day tomorrow...which happened to have been a last-minute thing. One of my friends is going and had her rollercoaster buddy bail, so she asked me! But the best part? Her brother and my sister are dating so we get to bug the crap out of them. Muahahaha!  
><em>

_By the way: if there ever seems to be a word missing from a sentence, please tell me! Sometimes when I write I'll accidentally leave a word out or misspell something I shouldn't. It's a common error. KThanx!  
><em>

_Hehe, yeah... Enjoy! :D  
><em>

_Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman_

* * *

><p>"No!"<p>

Danny shot up in bed, breathing heavily. Sweat covered his body. Scared, he felt his chest for any sign of being cut open—a scar…a bandage…blood… _Something_ that would confirm what he saw was real. But there was nothing; his chest was clean and all intact. Nobody had touched him or sliced him up.

The door to his room burst open and two people rushed in, weapons in hand. Danny jumped upon seeing them, covering up with the blankets. Not that they would provide much protection, but it hid his face from view.

"Put. Those. _Down_!"

He heard the familiar voice of his older sister as she raced into the room, flipping on the light switch. "You two need to _think_ before you barge into someone's room with _loaded weapons_!"

"We heard a scream," Jack pouted, lowering the gun he held.

"It was _Danny_!" the sixteen-year-old pointed to the lump on the bed. "He was having _nightmares_!"

"No need to yell, Jazz," Danny pulled the covers off his head and stared over at her. The three Fenton's standing in the doorway looked at him. "I can hear every word you're saying."

Maddie handed her weapon to her daughter and walked over to his bed. "Were you…having a nightmare?" she asked, sitting down next to him.

He shrugged. "I guess. But it felt so…_real_._" _The hybrid pulled his legs up. He felt something hit the bed, realizing it was the amulet. Cautiously, he slid it under the covers, careful not to let anyone see the artifact. If what he discovered in his dream was real, the amulet was a dangerous item. He had to find some way to get rid of it before it did any more harm.

"—Danny? You know you don't have to hide anything from us; your father and I love you."

"Huh? Oh…" he shook all thoughts of the amulet from his head. "I know. Mom, do you think we could talk more tomorrow? It's a little early…" he motioned to the clock reading 2:47 AM.

His mother glanced over at the clock. "Sure. We'll talk later," she leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead. He was cold, but that didn't alarm her as much as it used to. She knew the reason why now, but tried not to let him know. Jazz had suggested to them they let _him_ reveal who he really was. Her daughter knew from experience that it was better to gain his trust than jump in and frighten him. If Danny wanted her to know that he was Danny Phantom, he would tell her on his terms.

She got up from the bed and returned to the doorway, picking her gun up. Jazz was relieved to be rid of the weapon as she watched her mother leave the room, her father following behind without making a noise or uttering a word. Once the two were down the hall, she shut the door, giving herself some privacy with her younger brother.

"She didn't…_hate_ me," the fourteen-year-old hybrid realized, his feet hanging over the bed. "I thought for sure she was going ask about it."

"You don't know how badly she wanted to. I couldn't get them to keep their mouths shut earlier; it was an ambush of questions that I couldn't answer," she replied calmly, leaning against the door. "I made them promise not to do that to you once you tell them."

Danny gazed over at her, confused. "Me? I thought you told them?"

"I did, but if you _really_ want them to know about the secret, then you'll reveal the truth. You know more about this than I do."

"So, they're not going to bother me about it unless _I_ tell them?"

He couldn't believe it; his sister had revealed what she knew about him but at the same time protected his secret. Danny respected her, more now than he had weeks ago before learning that she was aware of his secret. She hadn't let it slip that she knew, letting him trust her. Jazz had felt confident that he would eventually trust her enough to let her in on it.

He smiled and stood up, walking in her direction. Jazz straightened as he approached her. She was about to ask what he was doing before he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a hug. "Thanks," she heard him whisper.

She was dazed and slightly confused, but she was never one to refuse a hug from her younger brother. Wrapping her own arms around him, she returned the gesture. "You're welcome, little brother."

* * *

><p>An hour had passed since Jazz returned to her own room, leaving the halfa alone to his thoughts. He examined the amulet, replaying the dream he had earlier in his head. Was it true the artifact had a human form? Could it really know all his hearts' desires, fears, and secrets?<p>

It knew he feared being rejected by his parents; it knew he feared being used as a lab experiment. He experienced _both_ of those fears in his nightmare, and the human form of the amulet had appeared, telling him about it.

But could an inanimate object have another, _living_ form? It seemed too unrealistic. It couldn't happen. There was no way. He was half-ghost; his powers were an accident, or so he believed. It was not only impossible that an amulet could appear as a woman, but it was completely unreal.

Danny sighed and glanced over at his clock. It was almost 4:00 on a Monday morning. He had to be awake for school in a couple hours. He wondered if he could get out of his early classes and sleep in. His parents knew about him being Danny Phantom. He could say he'd been battling a ghost all night and needed to rest. Surely they'd understand; he _was_ the good guy, after all.

He returned his attention to the amulet. What was he supposed to do with it? If everything from his dream was real, then it was a potential threat. He couldn't just leave it lying around the house. A ghost could get its hands on it! Then what would he do?

"I really don't know _what_ to do with you," he spoke aloud to the amulet, wondering if it understood him. Yawning, Danny gently placed it down on his nightstand. He wobbled to his feet and walked over to the light switch next to the door, and once the room fell pitched black, he returned to his bed, sliding underneath the covers. Before falling asleep, he stared at the artifact.

"Maybe Clockwork will know…" he yawned again and closed his eyes, letting his mind wander and dreams steal him away from reality.

* * *

><p>It was 6:59 AM when a loud alarm woke the fourteen-year-old up from his dreams. His clock was flashing red. Groaning, Danny reached over to his nightstand and felt around for the familiar box-like shape of the clock. When he found it, he slammed his fist down on it hard, trying to get it to stop beeping.<p>

The noise continued to ring.

"GAH!" he screamed, rolling over in his bedcovers. He didn't realize how close to the edge of the bed he was until he didn't feel the mattress anymore and fell face-first to the floor. His blanket and a pillow fell with him. Tangled in a mess, he sighed angrily and attacked the pillow, causing it to fly several feet away.

Next came the blanket as he climbed out of the fabric, threatening to shred it if it didn't release him and allow him to murder the alarm clock. Untangling his feet from the blanket took more effort than the rest of his body, but he managed to cause little damage to the cloth to escape.

Now free, Danny crawled up on his knees and glared at the flashing clock. It was 7:01 AM; half an hour passed the his usual wake-up alarm. Curiously, he released the tension in his facial muscles and relaxed, wondering why he hadn't heard his alarm go off until now.

_What the—?_ He mouthed to himself, pulling the clock toward him and shoving everything else out of the way. It was plugged in; his alarm had been set. Why didn't he _hear_ it? And what was that awful noise he heard instead?

"Danny Phantom! We know you're up there."

He heard a voice call his name, magnified by a megaphone. What was going _on_? It was Monday, right? When did he usually get in trouble on a Monday? When did Danny Phantom _ever_ become publically associated with FentonWorks?

Setting his clock down, he crawled over to the window quietly. The sun had recently began to show itself in the horizon, lighting up the town of Amity Park. Peering outside, he looked down. Almost immediately, he drew his head back inside and pinned his back against the wall. His heart started racing.

"_Cops_? What are the cops doing here?" he asked himself. "What happened _now_?"

His door swung open as Jazz ran into the room, the Fenton Anti-Creek Stick in her hands. "Are you alright?" she whispered, ducking down the further she came into the room. She was crawling on her knees when she reached Danny and still in her pajamas.

"What's going on? Why are there _cops_ outside the house?" he demanded to know, staring at his sister as she copied him, pressing her own back against the outer wall. His eyes instantly drifted down to the weapon. "What's with the _bat_?"

"We're not dealing with ghosts; that's the town police department."

Danny returned his gaze to her. Dramatically, he threw his arms out and whispered: "And _what_ are they _doing here_?"

Jazz shrugged. "How would I know? Based on all the yelling below, they're after _you_, or more specifically Danny _Phantom_."

"But I didn't _DO ANYTHING_!" he screamed into his sister's ear and began crawling away from the window. He stopped at his nightstand, remembering the amulet and the danger it possessed if it fell into the wrong hands. He didn't want to possibly have to leave the house without knowing it was safe and hidden. But when he reached the nightstand, the amulet wasn't in the place he had set it earlier. "Oh no…" he muttered and started tearing the whole thing apart.

Could he have possibly knocked it over when he tried to turn off the alarm? Did it fall when he hit the floor? Not seeing it on top the nightstand, he searched through the drawers, but always came up empty. He checked underneath and in every crack of the bed. The amulet was nowhere in sight and it was beginning to scare him more than waking up to the entire police department at his front door.

"Crap…" he muttered again, looking through places he'd already searched in case he somehow missed it. "Crap crap _crap_!"

"Danny?" Jazz rested by the bed, starting at her brother. She felt nervous seeing him behave feel so rushed and distracted by something that had apparently gone missing.

His breathing was quick. He turned around, his eyes glowing green. "I lost it," he whispered fearfully, resting his back on the front of the nightstand. "It was _right here_."

"What, Danny?"

He swallowed, trying to steady his breathing. He pulled his legs in. How could he have lost it? It didn't have legs; it couldn't have walked away. Unless it turned into the woman and disappeared from his room—which he wasn't convinced could actually happen—it _had_ to be around somewhere.

He closed his eyes, blocking the world out of his mind. If the amulet _did_ have the powers to see into his heart; to use his fears, desires, and secrets against him, he couldn't risk another ghost finding it. Bad things could happen. He could end up dead; or worse, a lab experiment. The thought of death didn't scare him as much as being used to experiment on; he _was_ a unique creature. Only one other person existed in the world as a hybrid, and that was Vlad.

Danny shuddered at the thought of Vlad getting his hands on the amulet. The man wanted Jack dead and Maddie for himself. He wanted to win Danny over to his side and abandon everything he had worked for to be the good guy; his towns hero. Vlad wasn't a good-doer; Danny was. They were mortal enemies for a reason. If the evil ghost somehow managed to get the artifact, bad things would happen, and not only just to the Fenton family.

Vlad was determined to rule the world. If he had the amulet, there was no stopping the man from using it to his advantage.

He felt a hand slap him across his face and instantly he jolted forward, slamming his head into his sister's, causing a headache for both of them. "Danny!" the sixteen-year-old cried, holding her head in pain.

"_What_?" the halfa shouted, looking over at his older sister. He covered the injured portion of his head, just above his eye, with his hand.

The headache made her feel sick, but she was also shivering. The room temperature had dropped several degrees in a matter of seconds; enough for a human to feel the difference but not for someone who was half-ghost and already had a slightly cooler body temperature. Danny didn't notice the difference. "Out in the…the hall-allwa-way," she muttered as a massive cold chill traveled throughout her body.

"The hallway? What's in the—?" A bright blue mist escaped his mouth as he felt the air around him freeze. He recognized the mist as a sure-fire sign that a ghost was present. Looking out to the hallway, he transformed into his ghost half. "Stay here," he ordered and flew out of the room.


	4. Emperor's Amulet

**RULE of KING: THE EMPEROR'S AMULET  
><strong>Chapter 04: Amity Park, December 2004

_Chapter 4 is here and our villain has arrived! Finally! The next chapter should be up tomorrow or Wednesday. I want to get at least a couple more chapters written before posting it. Enjoy! :D (If there's any confusion, please let me know. This may or may not be a confusing chapter. I'm not sure; I _know_ what's going on...)  
><em>

_Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman_

* * *

><p>Jazz waited patiently in her brother's room, wrapping herself with his blanket. It felt like every couple minutes, the air temperature would drop another few degrees. She could see her breath now and drew her legs closer in an attempt to stay warm. She really wished Danny hadn't disappeared.<p>

She heard a crash come from the hallway and jumped. A familiar scream from her brother followed, along with another crash. She winced, hearing the pain in his voice as he talked to his attacker. She couldn't identify who the other ghost was, but could narrow it down to being male. How many male ghosts did he usually fight?

"Leave her _alone_!" Danny's scream echoed down the hallway and into his room. Jazz looked over, expecting to see someone standing in the doorway, but it remained untouched and empty.

There was another crash, but this time the ceiling began to crack. Debris fell down on the teenager, frightening her more. What was going on? How badly was her brother getting beat up? Did he actually cause the ceiling to crack?

A siren sounded outside as something loud and destructive attacked the house. The frame shook and more debris fell in larger quantities. _"Everyone back up; there's bombs all over the house!"_ someone shouted over the loudspeaker.

Bombs all over the…_house_?

"_What about the kids? They're still inside!"_

"_Phantom wired the doors; if we attempt to get in, the whole thing will BLOW!"_

The policemen were arguing over the loudspeaker, frightening Jazz more. Someone had placed bombs around her home, trapping her and Danny inside. If she didn't have to worry about the building exploding, she'd make a run for the front door. She knew her brother could handle herself; if the roof collapsed, he could phase right through it and be OK.

But she would be a horrible big sister if she left him behind. He was off protecting her somewhere in the house and she was considering escaping a wired building, leaving him to fend for himself.

Removing the blanket from around her, she crawled toward the door, leaving the bat behind. It would provide little protection against a ghost and it was a hindrance to her survival. She could live without it.

Jazz reached the doorway quickly and peered out into the hallway. Nobody was currently occupying the area, so she scrambled to her feet and headed for the stairs. Her goal was to make it to the kitchen and raid the cupboards for hidden ghost weapons her parents figured neither she nor Danny would ever think to look.

"And where might you think _you're_ going, Jasmine?"

"Downstairs to…" she stopped mid-sentence, quickly realizing she didn't recognize the voice talking to her. Danny _never_ called her by her full name and her parents were likely not in the house. They had a tendency to spend early mornings tracking ghosts before she and Danny left for school.

She turned around and screamed, taking a step backward. Fear flooded her senses as she stared at the ghost. He knew her name… How did he know her name? She didn't recognize him. He wasn't one of the daily regulars that haunted her brother. Those ghosts she was less scared over after watching Danny battle them and win over the last couple months secretly. This ghost, however, was completely new to her.

"It's not polite to stare," he grinned devilishly and grabbed her arm, dragging her closer to him. She could feel his cold skin on hers. It was too cold for her likeability and she shivered. But he continued to keep her close to him, ignoring the fact she was freezing. "I figured you would have left the house by now, Miss Fenton; it's sad to see such an intelligent and beautiful young lady involved in this mess."

Jazz bit her lip; her muscles tensed as she continued to freeze. "I will _never_ leave my brother," she said quietly and made an attempt to pull away from him. It was cold; he was cold. The air around her was cold. Her arm began to flare up in pain as he gripped it tighter. "Ouch," she winced in pain.

"I see you're fragile, unlike your mother. But I can fix that," the ghost whispered to her, his lips just behind her ear. He could hear her heart beat against her chest; sweat covered her skin; her breathing was heavy.

"I thought…I told you…to leave her…_alone_, Plasmius."

Jazz tried to pull away again, but Vlad held on to her as he swung them both around to face the young hybrid. Danny stood in the hallway covered in bruises and cuts. He held his lower abdomen as pain swelled up in his stomach. His eyes drifted down to his sister being held captive in his enemy's arms, but moved upward until he locked on Vlad's.

The ghost growled at his foe. "She is _mine_, Daniel, as will you and your mother soon be. I'm in control here; there are bombs _all over_ the building and they can be deactivated if you agree to join me."

"For_get it_!" Danny shouted at him, charging up his ghost ray. His free hand began to glow green. "My family is _not_ for sale!"

"Relax, Daniel. You could hurt an innocent bystander with your anger," Vlad's grin grew as he purposefully tightened his grip more on Jazz's arm. The teenager cried out in pain again, clawing at the ghost's hands with her fingernails. Nothing she did caused him to release his hold. Seeing his sister struggle, the half-ghost extinguished his ray. His enemy lightened his grip slightly. "Good boy, Daniel."

"Just let her go, Vlad."

Jazz froze. "Vlad? But… He's… You _can't _be!" she looked up at the ghost's face, trying to find any similarities to the Vlad she knew from Wisconsin and this ghost named Vlad. They couldn't possibly be the same. It was a fairly common name, wasn't it? But what _other_ Vlad obsessed over her mother? What _other_ Vlad could know her name?

"Oh, but I am," Vlad squeezed her arm. "And much like with Daniel's accident, your idiot _father_ was the root cause of it all."

"You need to stop living in the past, and _move on_, Plasmius," Danny said as calmly as he could, emphasizing his point that his enemy should 'move on' instead of taking revenge against his father for something that happened twenty years ago. Taking a step forward, Danny held out his hand. "Now let go of my sister."

Plasmius glared down at the extended hand then looked at his captive, deciding whether or not to release her. Keeping her hostage was the only thing keeping the younger hybrid from unleashing his emotions on him; Vlad _knew_ the teenager was powerful, especially when he let his emotions take control. But he had a weapon better than using the sixteen-year-old to his advantage. "Fine," he loosened his grip on her. "I don't really need her to keep you under check, Daniel."

Feeling he had released her, Jazz pushed herself away from the ghost and hid behind her brother. Her arm had been bruised and hurt to touch. When this was over, she had to make an appointment at the doctor to get it looked at.

Seeing that his sister was now safe, Danny re-charged his ghost ray. "Now, nothing stands between me and making sure you understand that _nobody_ messes with my family without dealing with _me_."

"Ah-ah-ah, Daniel, that's not a wise thing to do," Vlad sang with confidence as he reached down his shirt collar and pulled out a golden artifact he strung around his neck. Immediately, Danny extinguished his ray and gawked at the object, recognizing it as his missing amulet.

"That's… You stole that from my room!" the half-ghost teenager stepped forward for a better look, but knew there was no mistaking it. It _was_ the amulet from his room and somehow, Vlad got his hands on it while he was sleeping.

The older halfa clutched the amulet in his fist. "Do you even _know_ what this is, Daniel? What _powers_ it has? I heard of it throughout my travels, but it's location is never known unless it decides to reveal itself to its victim. It's not an ordinary amulet; it's _alive_.

"Some say it was forged by the hands of four very powerful psychics many, _many_ centuries ago, with the aid of an extremely powerful wizard you may know as Merlin."

Jazz peeked out from behind her brother's back. "Merlin existed during the time of King Arthur, which was back in the fifth, sixth century! How could something so old appear so new?"

"Magic, Jasmine. Merlin was no fool, and neither were the psychics who forged it. It was designed to keep Arthur's reign manageable and golden," Vlad explained as he rolled the amulet around his fingers. "It was lost after the King's death, but it has appeared in many different time periods, both before Arthur's reign and after, making it impossible to track."

"You sure know a lot about that piece of jewelry, Plasmius," Danny mocked his enemies knowledge of the amulet's history.

Plasmius replaced the amulet back under his shirt. "It's not just for show, my boy. I'm sure even _you_ know that. The _Emperor's Amulet_, as it is commonly known as, is powerful enough that it knows your heart's desires, secrets, and fears."

The younger hybrid cocked his head and yawned. "That's not exactly news to me. I'm _aware_ of what it can do."

"Ah," a surprised look appeared on Vlad's face, "so she _has_ visited you! Interesting, but _I_ know something about this artifact the amulet will never admit to being true. You see, part of its design is to read people. It made a good ruler likable because he knew what his people desired; tyrants were feared because they knew their enemies fears and secrets. However, the amulet has a secret of its own that only few have discovered it.

"Daniel, Jasmine, it allows the wearer to alter reality and bend it to their choosing. When in the proper hands, it is everyone's friend; but in the wrong hands, it can be your worst enemy."

Danny gasped and looked back at his sister. "So that's what she meant."

"Who?" the sixteen-year-old quietly asked, curiosity flooding her mind. She felt like she knew nothing of what the two hybrids were talking about. But she was mostly curious about who this 'she' was.

"The amulet," he answered, returning his gaze to Vlad. "I didn't understand at first, but she told me she could be my friend or my enemy. I thought she was a neutral being with potential to be a threat. I didn't think she meant it was another _power_."

"She must like you, Daniel," his enemy flashed another grin. Danny shot him a glare, threatening him to stop talking. But Vlad took the response as a challenge. "Alas, I would love to stay and chat, but I have a schedule to keep. Are you with me, or against me, Daniel? Choose wisely."

For the third time, the half-ghost charged his ghost ray and aimed it at Vlad. "I won't repeat this again, Plasmius. I will _never_ join you. You can't have me; you can't have my sister; you _can't_ have my mom."

"That was hardly enough time to think it through, but if you insist on remaining my enemy, then I will treat you as such. _I'm_ in control of this world; I will see to it that you don't survive to see the end, and personally eliminate all who oppose me," Vlad announced as he slowly began to fade away, but not before he lifted up his sleeve and activated a red button. "You have 120 seconds to clear the blast."


	5. Deceit

**RULE of KING: THE EMPEROR'S AMULET  
><strong>Chapter 05: Amity Park, December 2004

_If the last chapter wasn't confusing, maybe this one is. But what do I know? I only write the dang stuff! It's you who have to tell me if you understand what's going on ;)  
><em>

_Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman_

* * *

><p>"C'mon, Jazz, we have to keep <em>moving<em>!"

"Danny, I can't _breathe_. My lungs hurt."

The fourteen-year-old held on to his sister as he lead them both through the smoke. One of the bombs planted under the stairs had activated the moment they hit the bottom of the steps. It wasn't a deadly blast, but it shorted out Danny's powers, forcing him to revert back to his human form.

The siblings rested in the living room after getting blasted. Jazz had suffered the worst and couldn't breathe right. Danny could hear her forcing air into her lungs; it pained her to do so. He couldn't stand to see her suffer.

"Please, Jazz. We can't just stay here," the half-ghost pleaded unsuccessfully with his older sister, but she shook her head, refusing to get up. She coughed violently, causing more pain to her lungs.

The house shook suddenly as another bomb ignited from upstairs. Debris fell down on them. Protectively, Danny covered his sister's body with his own, taking the hits from the falling ceiling. He couldn't let her get hurt any more than she already was. She _had_ to survive; he wasn't about to let her die.

Looking around the smoky house, he tried to think up a plan to get her out. He could manage to stay alive under the current condition; the smoke didn't affect him as much. Jazz was still completely human and required oxygen to live. He had to come up with an escape plan fast. Time was ticking. He wasn't sure how much longer they had before the entire house collapsed down on them.

Jazz coughed and clutched her abdomen in severe pain. It was getting worse. "Hang on, Jazz; I'm _going_ to get you out," he said reassuring her that he wasn't going to let her die. Not under his watch. No one was going to die as long as he was around.

_Think, think, THINK_!

The front door really wasn't that far away, but in the smoke, it seemed like it would take ages to reach. If he could just get her to the door, he could save her life. But there was the matter of the whole house blowing up if anyone crossed through the doorway. Danny wasn't sure how safe his sister would be if the remaining bombs exploded the second she set foot outside. He would get caught in the explosion, but did he really want her to as well?

If he pushed her out the door, could she escape it? It was definitely the only plan he had at the moment that could produce a positive result. He would have to risk the negative and everyone dies.

Turning back to his sister, the fourteen-year-old carefully instructed her to remain still and to not move until he returned. Jazz simply nodded, unable to move anyway. Her lungs were burning. She coughed again, but instead of it being a painful, violent cough, this time there was blood.

Danny knew he only had so much time before he completely lost her to the smoke.

* * *

><p>Vlad Masters appeared in the crowd surrounding the Fenton's house. He had been 'in town on business' and heard about the disaster at FentonWorks. Playing the best friend card, he sought out the family, hoping they weren't inside. Jack and Maddie stood by one of the police cars.<p>

"Those are my _kids_!" Maddie screamed at the officer. "_Both_ of them are in there!"

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but we can't go in yet. The place is wired; if we step through that door, the whole thing will go KAPLUH!" the man explained to the woman, using a hand gesture that everyone recognized as 'explosion'. "We'll lose more than two teenagers."

The officer tipped his hat and walked away, leaving the parents baffled. Maddie watched him strut away, cursing him in her mind. She wanted to strangle him for putting her kids at risk. _Her two teenagers._ Danny and Jazz didn't deserve to be trapped in a building wired to explode. They were too young to have made any enemies determined enough to rid the world of her children.

But a thought crossed her mind. She looked at the building as smoke leaked out from the upstairs windows. Jazz was too young to have made any enemies, but her son had _many_ due to him being the ghostly superhero, Danny Phantom. It terrified her that moment that her fourteen-year-old son had enemies that would want him dead. And her daughter somehow got caught up in the battle.

"Jack, this must be one of Danny's enemies doings!" she whispered to her husband, making sure no one around them could possibly hear their conversation. "Why else would he be trapped in there?"

The man shrugged. "But Jazz is in there, too."

"She knew about Danny's other side before we did and got mixed up in things. The ghosts probably used her to get to him, knowing that he would risk his _life_ to keep her safe."

"Maddie!"

The woman turned around at the call of her name. Vlad raced up to her, wrapping her up in a hug. "I am _so_ sorry to hear about Daniel and Jasmine. I promise you, I will do my best to find the culprit and send him to prison!"

A slap radiated off the thin man's back, causing him to choke. "Thanks for the support, V-Man!"

"Yeah…" he tried to catch his breath and recompose himself, "you're welcome, Jack."

"Hey, we've got a sighting on the boy!" several officers and firemen rushed passed them toward the front door. It was swinging open with fourteen-year-old Danny Fenton leaning against the inside wall. He was starting to cough after inhaling the fresh air. "We need to get him out of there!"

Maddie pushed Vlad away and leaned against the hood of the nearest cop car. She felt relieved to see that her son was alright. She could see him, standing there; his shirt was covered in debris and dust, but he was _alive_.

But as quickly as he had appeared in the doorway, he disappeared back in the house, causing alarm among the crowd. What was he doing? He was standing at the gateway of freedom and _life_ and he decided to go back in the collapsing building? Was he insane?

A loud, audible gasp echoed through the crowd as the teenager returned to the open door, supporting the body of his injured sister. Even Vlad was shocked to see both teenagers alive, although the girl looked awful. Glancing around the crowd, he shrunk back until he was hidden behind the cars. Neither sibling was supposed to survive the ordeal. Jazz was a witness and posed a threat to his whole plan. Danny was his enemy and _couldn't_ live.

Lifting up his sleeve, the thin billionaire grinned at the small watch that adorned his wrist. The siblings had a few short seconds before the entire structure was completely destroyed, hopefully taking them along with it.

"Oh my gosh!"

A woman from the surrounding crowd screamed as the building suddenly burst into flames and a dozen bombs exploded, obliterating the house. Pieces of the structure landed everywhere among the street. Some larger pieces crushed nearby houses.

Vlad's grin grew. Mission had been successfully completed. There was _no_ way the teenagers would have escaped that blast. Standing up, he returned to his post next to Maddie. But when he saw the car, neither Fenton was around. Curiously, he looked around in search of the grieving parents.

A police officer ran passed him, talking into his walkie. "We need immediate assistance at the Fenton house. Several men have been injured in the attempt to successfully rescue one of the Fenton teens."

* * *

><p>Thick smoke coated the whole of the collapsed building. It was impossible for rescue men to see, even with heavy-duty flashlights. But it didn't matter; no one could have survived the blast. They had saved the sixteen-year-old from being caught in the explosion, but the other Fenton hadn't been so lucky.<p>

After he had pushed his sister out of the house, he had immediately locked himself inside the building. Everyone had thought he was crazy to remain inside when he could have escaped, too.

"_It's been two hours, Mac; I don't think we'll find the kid in here,"_ one of the men said through his headset to the second rescuer.

The other man dismissed him. _"I'm not giving up. He's in here somewhere."_

"_Where, Man? I can't see anything!"_

"_Here's HERE! Just keep looking!"_

A sigh. _"Poor kid."_

Another hour passed by while the rescue team searched the house for the body of the fourteen-year-old. It was almost five in the evening and the sun was starting to clear from the warm December sky. Nobody thought Danny had survived the explosion; it would have been impossible.

As the rescuers began leaving, Vlad stepped inside. He scanned the area, satisfied with the outcome. He had finally won a battle against his young foe. It was a waste of potential, having to destroy the teenager; if only Danny had agreed to join him, his sister wouldn't be in intensive care, struggling to survive and the boy himself wouldn't be dead.

"Hey, you can't be in here, Sir!"

Vlad turned around in his spot to see one of the rescue workers walking toward him. He had removed his helmet. "You're in an unrestricted area."

"I apologize," the billionaire dipped his head courteously. "I happen to be a friend of the family; a _good_ friend of the family. It's so sad for them to lose their son like this."

"Well, _friend_, as you can see, we're working here. You could very well be standing on top of the body there."

Vlad chuckled humorously, not buying the words this worker spoke to him. "I'll make a deal with you—give me a minute of peace to say my goodbye's to the boy. I am, after all, his favorite uncle."

The worker bit his lip decisively, his brown eyes studying the man before him. It took him a minute before he finally came to a decision. "Fine, but _one minute_, Sir. I'll be watching you from a distance, so don't touch anything." He spun around on his heel and replaced the helmet back on his head, leaving the man to himself.

"What a fool," Vlad muttered as he walked in the opposite direction toward the kitchen. He reached into his jacket, removing the golden amulet. The black cross was now outlined in red. He grinned. "To think, Daniel, all of this could have been avoided had you chosen more wisely."

He entered what was left of the kitchen and looked around. The amulet was gripped tightly in his hand, making sure he didn't lose or drop it. He continued to speak to the air around him as if his enemy could hear him. "Your sister got lucky, but I plan to finish what I started. It's a whole new era, Daniel, and I'm running the show."

* * *

><p>It was cold…and dark. He couldn't feel his legs. His head throbbed painfully. A long, bloody gash cut down his arm from shoulder to wrist. The blood had dried, but it was an ugly, red mess. Pieces of debris punctured his skin. There was a nasty, metallic taste in his mouth.<p>

Cautiously, he opened his eyes, but all he could see was darkness. A single hole above allowed light to peep through, but it barely lit the small space he was trapped in. The loose pieces of metal creaked over his head, threatening to topple down. He was only several feet from the hole, but it felt forever away.

He let out a loud, audible grunt. The position he was forced into was extremely uncomfortable to remain in for hours on end. He had no idea how long he had been unconscious before waking up in a small hole beneath a pile of heavy metal tiles.

He reached up, attempting to remove his legs from under the rubble they were trapped under. He couldn't feel them, which meant they were numb or he was paralyzed from the waist down. Using all the strength he had, he climbed up the walls of his hole. Sweat poured through his pores, covering his body. Pain seared through him as he slowly lifted his legs out, one at a time. His pants snagged on a sharp edge, ripping through the fabric and puncturing the skin.

Feeling began to return to his legs as they were freed, allowing him to sigh in relief. He wasn't sure what he would have done if he'd been paralyzed. As soon as he could move both his legs, he curled up in his spot and rested his head against the wall.

The air was dry and dusty; it was difficult to keep a steady breath. His lungs burned as he inhaled the dust. He could still taste metal on his tongue. But he ignored it and turned his attention to the gash on his arm. He ran his finger from one end of the cut to the other, snagging pieces of dry blood. Then felt his leg where he had recently been injured. He could feel the stickiness of blood, but it didn't seem like too much to be worried about. Had his whole hand been a gooey mess, _then_ he'd be scared.

"—don't touch anything."

He heard the a voice above him. It was nobody he recognized, but there was still _someone_ in the house. Were people looking for him? Did they think they'd find him? Did they think he was dead?

Footsteps approached where he was trapped. The person they belonged to wasn't heavy; he could tell; the footsteps sounded light. He had learned to tell the difference between heavyweight and lightweight peoples' footsteps. It came in handy when he was younger and played Hide 'n Seek with his father; or when his sister tried to sneak into his room.

The person stopped. Something felt wrong about whoever it was above him; something evil filled the air. He looked up at where the small bit of light entered his hole. His energy had been exhausted by trying to free his legs, but he _had_ to know who was in the house. Reaching up, he climbed the wall, using any broken tiles as footholds to keep himself from falling. It didn't take long before he reached the hole. It was big enough for him to see outside.

Big enough for him to get a glimpse of a pair of pointy black shoes standing right next to him. He recoiled as fear filled his head. He recognized those shoes. A rescue worker wouldn't wear something that expensive and hazardous on a mission. No… This person was wealthy, or at least had money to spend. There was only one human being he knew was rich enough to wear such shoes; one rich man bold enough to visit the site of a disaster and parade around like he owned the place.

And the voice he heard confirmed his suspicions, as well as strike fear into his heart for the ones he loved and would risk everything to protect. "Your sister got lucky," came the malicious voice he now recognized, "but I plan to finish what I started. It's a whole new era, Daniel, and I'm running the show."

Danny gasped and pulled away from the hole quietly. He didn't want the man to hear him and discover that he had survived the blast. He had been injured in the explosion; a fight with the older and more experienced hybrid would most likely kill him.

_I have to protect Jazz_, he thought thinking of his sister's safety. He had successfully gotten her out of the house before the timer went off. She had survived. But the fruitloop wasn't finished yet. From what Danny could hear, the man was planning to kill her another way. As her younger brother and the town hero, he could. Not. Let. That. _Happen!_

* * *

><p>Nighttime had arrived in Amity Park.<p>

As soon as he couldn't see light anymore, Danny had started digging his way out of his hole. His powers were acting weird so he couldn't phase out, afraid he'd get his foot stuck in the debris and have to wait until morning before he could get it out. Then someone would find him, taking him to the hospital, and Vlad would then know he survived.

Nuh-uh; this teenager wasn't going to risk it. His enemy had already attempted to kill him once in the last twenty-four hours. Danny didn't want the man trying to kill him so soon…and without his powers fully functional. That wouldn't be a fair fight for his life.

He grabbed hold of a large tile and yanked it from its spot. Dust flew everywhere; other tiles around it loosened. Freedom was so close, he just had to remove a few more tiles. The air inside his hole was beginning to suffocate him, so he worked harder, determined to escape the darkness.

Examining another tile, he gripped it in his hands and pulled it out of its spot with ease. Three lose tiles fell, leaving a small gap open. Relief flooded through him as he dropped the tile he held in his hands and scrambled toward the opening. It was just big enough that he could stick his entire hand through. _This_ was his way out.

Pulling it back inside, he continued digging around his escape hole. Tiles were falling out of their slots with no difficulty. Soon, the hole he was going to use to get out was finally big enough that he could slide through.

Cautiously, he poked his head out first, checking for any signs of danger or people camping around the destroyed building. Upon seeing none, he stuck his arms out and began climbing through the hole. The moment he was free, he dashed away from the area, searching for a place to hide for a few minutes so he could think up a plan, ignoring any pain from the injuries he had received from Vlad and being stuck in a dark hole, surrounded by fallen, sharp debris.

There was a problem living in the town—other than the park, which was located near the middle of Amity Park, there were no trees or bushes around that he could take cover in. Danny stayed in the shadows of buildings as much as possible, avoiding unwanted attention. He didn't want to hide in the park; it was a public place and people could find him there. _Vlad_ could find him there.

Crouching low, he looked down the street toward the countryside. Few people lived out there where a small woodland area bordered the town. Fewer people visited it, making it his best option. He would have to avoid all who inhabited the woods, but considering the small amount, it was possible.

Danny swallowed. He couldn't hide out in the shadows any longer before someone got curious and spotted him, or his silhouette, wandering about town. He'd have the police on his tail in no time; they'd see him injured and recognize him as the Fenton boy. What happened then could go one of two ways: he had survived and would be admitted into the hospital; or he was a ghost and ghost hunters would be called in to eliminate him.

Then there was the issue of his parents. They knew he was half-ghost, and would choose to believe his ghost powers kept him safe. Whatever happened to him; whichever way the story went if he were to be found, his secret would be at risk. Whether it be discovered at the hospital or his parents doing their best to protect him from being destroyed by ghost hunters, his secret wouldn't be a secret for long.

And then there was Vlad who would kill him no matter what.

Shoving all thoughts of exposure aside, Danny set his sights on the countryside. If he wanted to reach the trees before sunrise, he had to leave immediately. Taking in several deep breaths, he pictured his destination in his head and the freedom it would bring.

He took off running.


End file.
